Pegatron CEO: Bloomberg is lying about ‘falling iPad mini demand’

By Christian Zibreg on May 9, 2013

The credulous Bloomberg yesterday covered Pegatron’s investor conference where the contract manufacturer announced a whopping 80 percent year-over-year growth in first-quarter profits.

Pegatron also cautioned investors that second-quarter revenue may drop between 20 and 30 percent amid the broader decline in consumer electronics demand.

However, writer Tim Culpan decided the story wasn’t newsworthy enough in and of itself. And in his quest for pageviews, the reporter reckoned he better run the piece under the more Apple’s doomsday headline, “Falling iPad mini demand to push Pegatron electronics sales down.”

Well, guess what? 24 hours later, Pegatron CEO steps forward and tells the media that Culpan put those words in his mouth and completely fabricated the ‘falling iPad mini demand’ part. And there goes Bloomberg’s credibility right down the drain… Read More

 

Foxconn hiring assembly-line workers for next-gen iPhone production, WSJ and Bloomberg claim

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 15, 2013

Hon Hai Precision Industry aka Foxconn, which assembles iPhones and iPads for Apple, but also consumer electronics on behalf of other vendors, has started hiring assembly-line workers in the tens of thousands in preparation for Apple’s next iPhone, both Bloomberg and the credulous Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

People familiar with the matter tell the publications that the world’s largest contract manufacturer has been recruiting workers for the past month at its plant in Zhengzhou, eastern China.

The reports come following February indications pointing to Foxconn imposing a recruitment freeze across almost all of its factories in China after more workers returned from the Chinese New Year break than did last year, a move some attributed to the supposedly weakening iPhone demand… Read More

 

Apple yanks China app carrying books critical of the government

By Ed Sutherland on Apr 4, 2013

Apple has again moved to prevent anger from China. The Cupertino firm has pulled one bookstore app from the China iTunes store which hosted several titles by authors critical of the government.

Among the ten titles affected by the bookstore app’s removal were three by a banned Chinese author and political activist. The books focus on the long-running dispute over China’s occupation of Tibet, as well as the author’s detention by the country’s state security.

The action follows an apology by Apple CEO Tim Cook, after criticism over the iPhone maker’s warranty policy for smartphones sold in the country… Read More

 

Bloomberg: Samsung in race with Apple to get wristwatch to market

By Cody Lee on Mar 19, 2013

We’ve heard a lot of talk in recent months that Apple is working on a wristwatch-like device. And it could be ready to launch as soon as this year. We’ve also seen some alleged leaked screenshot images that suggest Samsung is working on a similar product.

Tonight, Bloomberg is out with a new report that adds significant weight to both rumors, claiming that not only are both companies preparing wearable devices that perform similar functions as smartphones, but they’re both racing to get them to market… Read More

 

Tim Cook may be asked to testify in e-book pricing fixing suit

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 10, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook may be required to testify in an antitrust lawsuit the United States Department of Justice filed against it and major e-book publishers over an alleged price fixing of e-books. Cook’s eventual testimony might be risky and could be potentially damaging to his company, now the main target of the suit after all named publishers had settled with regulators.

On the other hand, the CEO could take the opportunity to make a public case for a so-called agency model that the government claims has had anti-competitive impact. The agency model regulates the relationship between Apple and digital content owners who get to pick their iBook prices freely as long as they agree not to offer lower pricing to competitors than they do to Apple.

Business-wise, publishers prefer Apple’s policy over Amazon’s wholesale model where the online retailer sets prices as it sees fit, often hurting publishers’ bottom line by engaging in selling books at a loss just to draw shoppers to its online store… Read More

 

Bloomberg: iWatch will run iOS, is due by Christmas

By Ed Sutherland on Mar 4, 2013

A few months ago, you couldn’t move without encountering yet another Apple television rumor. But if you are interested in profit – and what company isn’t – the execs in Cupertino should cancel any HD TV and focus on wristwatches. Turns out, the wristwatch business could be way more profitable than Apple-made TVs.

Rival firms lust after Apple’s huge profit margins. In a potential stroke of good timing, massive margins from the much-rumored iWatch could replace the iPhone – even slacking PC sales, one Wall Street analyst forecasts Monday… Read More

 

Bloomberg: less pricey iPhone to cost $99 to $149, arriving late-2013

By Christian Zibreg on Jan 9, 2013

Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal (again) backed the swirling rumors previously calling for a redesigned and inexpensive iPhone model aimed at China and developing markets, where handsets are more often than not sold contract-free. Today, Bloomberg piggy-backs on the rumor with its own take, saying this new and less expensive iPhone model could cost anywhere from $99 to $149. That’s the full, unsubsidized price customers would be paying without having to commit their soul to a carrier… Read More

 

Best quotes from Tim Cook’s Bloomberg interview

By Christian Zibreg on Dec 6, 2012

Today is all about Tim Cook. Apple’s chief executive first sat down with Bloomberg Businesweek to talk Apple, the recent management shakeup, his business philosophy and a number of other topics.

And later this evening, Cook’s interview on NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams is scheduled to air at 10pm Eastern, 7pm Pacific.

We already brought you a preview of the NBC thing with Cook’s brief comments on the rumored Apple television set and “Made in USA” iMacs.

And now, here are the best quotes from the massive 11-page interview with Bloomberg. As a bonus, I’ve thrown in a priceless photo of a young Tim Cook… Read More

 

Ex-Apple talent helping rebuild Facebook’s iPhone app, broader overhaul in 2013

By Christian Zibreg on Jul 25, 2012

A little less than a month ago, The New York Times reported that Facebook was working on a brand new version of its sluggish iOS client, re-writing it completely with speed in mind from the ground up in Objective-C, the preferred programming language for modern iOS applications.

The current version owes much of its sluggishness to the fact that it provides a web view through an embedded web browser. A new report out today asserted that the social networking giant tapped some former Apple engineering talent not only to help build a smartphone of its own, but also to re-write the official iOS app… Read More

 

Rumor: Bloomberg Says Next iPad Will be LTE-Capable

By Cody Lee on Jan 13, 2012

We’ve heard an assortment of rumors over the last month or so regarding Apple’s upcoming tablet release. A majority of them seem to agree that a new iPad will debut sometime between late February and early March of this year.

As far as features go, however, the gossip has been all over the place. 7″ screen, 10″ screen, Siri, quad-core processor — we’ve heard it all. And now Bloomberg has entered the mix, claiming that Apple’s next tablet will be LTE-capable… Read More

 

Steve Jobs is a Ninja?

By Guest Author on Sep 14, 2010

Airports give us our funniest stories. People hauling every piece of garbage they own across the country with them often results in some hilarious revelations. Enter, Steve Jobs.

Gizmodo has a brief from a Bloomberg outlet that says that while Steve Jobs was getting his luggage at Kansai International Airport in Japan this July, security officials were forced to apprehend Jobs momentarily for having ninja throwing stars in his bags. It didn’t stop there… Read More